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The vicar general of the Legion of Christ has confirmed that the orderâ€™s leaders are likely to step down at their next General Chapter meeting.

â€œIn any religious congregation leadership changes with time, so I think that by the time we have the General Chapter it will be a normal moment, I would think, to change the leadership,â€ Father Luis Garza, the Legionâ€™s vicar general, told CNA.

Father Garzaâ€™s comments come as the Vatican is evaluating the Legionâ€™s constitution and its future mission. That process is being headed up by papal delegate to the order, Cardinal Velasio De Paolis.

â€œCardinal De Paolis is a very sound man, heâ€™s very intelligent, heâ€™s very wise, very prudent,â€ said Father Garza.

â€œHeâ€™s been helping us to understand the way that we should go and chart, in a sense, the way for the future.â€

â€œMy hope is that we can continue serving the Church with the same enthusiasm, or even more, and with the same dedication but at the same time purifying all that was wrong and that we definitely need to change,â€ said Father Garza of the Vatican review process.

â€œThe fear, of course, is that due to our lack of prayer and to the idea of not being faithful to a charism that weâ€™ve received, (we) could produce changes that are not according to what God would want and Godâ€™s plans.â€

Father Garza does not want to see the Legion to â€œtake a way by which the idea of religious life would be deprived of any value.â€

â€œReligious life, as you know, has vows and you need to abide by obedience, by poverty, by chastity. So if you move away from those principles, virtues and vows then you destroy religious life,â€ he explained.

He also stressed that he doesnâ€™t believe such changes will, in the end, be recommended by Cardinal De Paolis.